21 Apr AVS Body Mapping Workshops
The AVS is pleased to further our exploration of Body Mapping with two incredible AVS Workshop events during the month of May! Both workshops will be presented live via Zoom, and are free and open to the public. Both will also feature a masterclass portion, and we are accepting volunteers to participate on a first-come, first-served basis. Please see below for details.
On Sunday, May 5, Jennifer Johnson, influential Body Mapping educator and author of “What Every Violinist Needs to Know About the Body,” presents an in-depth exploration of Body Mapping concepts for upper strings, followed by an masterclass in which she evaluates individuals and helps them find a more relaxed, balanced, and productive relationship between body and instrument.
Please click here to register for the May 5 workshop with Jennifer Johnson.
One Sunday May 19, Body Mapping educator and setup specialist Claire Stefani will demonstrate how to apply Body Mapping principles to find a chinrest/shoulder rest/equipment setup that works for you. This session will also include a presentation portion followed by a “setup masterclass” session.
Please click here to register for the May 19 workshop with Claire Stefani.
Everyone is welcome to attend these workshops, and registration is free to all. However, you must be a current AVS member in order to participate in a masterclass. If you are interested in participating in a masterclass, please email info@avsnationaloffice.org with your name, which class you would like to participate in, and any details you would like to share in advance about your physical setup. Masterclass slots will be first-come, first-served, so sign up today!
We look forward to seeing you at these informative and impactful sessions!
Jennifer Johnson bio:
From 1993-2004, Jennifer Johnson held the position of second violin in the Atlantic String Quartet based in St. John’s, Newfoundland. After a playing-related injury in 2004, Jennifer licensed in Body Mapping with founder Barbara Conable. She is now a designated Teacher Trainer for the Association of Body Mapping Education. Jennifer is an internationally sought-after Master Teacher in Body Mapping and is renowned for her ex-pertise in helping musicians to move according to the design of their bodies to address and prevent play-ing injuries. She has been on faculty of the New York Philharmonic’s Zarin Mehta Program and has presented Body Mapping workshops to music organizations around the world, including the The Finnish National Opera and The Tuckamore Chamber Music Festival. She was a keynote speaker at the Australian Strings’ Association 2015 Conference. Jennifer was the featured guest of Juilliard’s Noa Kageyama on the Bulletproof Musician podcast in October 2019 and of Renée-Paule Gauthier’s Mind Over Finger podcast in the fall of 2022. She was invited to teach Body Mapping at the Starling-Delay Violin Symposium at Juilliard in May 2023. Jennifer is presently serving as the Lead for Musicians’ Health Research Initiative at Canada’s newly formed Music and Health Research Institute (MHRI). Jennifer has written three books on Body Mapping: What Every Violinist Needs to Know about the Body; Teaching Body Mapping to Children and Musician, Heal Thyself: Free Your Shoulder Region through Body Mapping. Her books have been translated into French, Spanish, Japanese with Por-tuguese and German translations forthcoming. Jennifer is presently filming a documentary that delves deeply into the compelling and moving stories of musicians whose careers have been saved and whose lives have been profoundly changed by Body Map-ping and the wisdom, compassion and vision of Barbara Conable.
Photo credit: Claire Stefani
Claire Stefani bio:
Claire Stefani is the founder of Volute Service International. One of her fields of expertise is to assist upper string players in optimizing their chin/shoulder rest set-up.
Claire is a Corrective Exercise Specialist, a licensed Body Mapping educator and an avid amateur violist. Claire has translated in French Jennifer Johnson’s second book “Teaching Body Mapping to children”. She has collaborated with some 1,800 musicians from the New World Symphony, Metropolitan Opera, New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, Caramoor’s Evnin Rising Stars, Juilliard, as well as the Paris Conservatoire National, Zaragoza Conservatorio Superior de Música, Lugano Conservatorio della Svitzzera Italiana and Stockholm Royal College of Music. She has also worked with students of prominent musicians such as:
- David Kim, Concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra
- Carol Rodland, viola professor at Juilliard
- Molly Carr, viola professor at Juilliard and Manhattan School of Music
- Li Lin and Ann Setzer, violin professors at Juilliard
- Dimitri Murrath, viola professor at the San Francisco Conservatory
- Susan Dubois, viola professor at University of North Texas in Dallas
- Josep Colomé, violin professor at the de Aragón (Zaragoza, Spain)
- Nathan Giem, concertmaster of the Deutshe Oper Berlin (Germany)